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Tech giant Apple chartered cargo flights to ferry 600 tons of iPhones, or as many as 1.5 million, to the United States from India, after it stepped up production there in an effort to beat President Donald Trump’s tariffs, sources told Reuters. The details of the push provide an insight into the U.S. smartphone company’s private strategy to navigate around the Trump tariffs and build up inventory of its popular iPhones in the United States, one of its biggest markets. Analysts have warned that U.S. prices of iPhones could surge, given Apple’s high reliance on imports from China, the main manufacturing hub of the devices, which is subject to Trump’s highest tariff rate of 125%. That figure is far in excess of the tariff of 26% on imports from India, but which is now on hold after Trump called a 90-day pause this week that excludes China. Apple “wanted to beat the tariff,” said one of the sources familiar with the planning. The company lobbied Indian airport authorities to cut to six hours the time needed to clear customs at the Chennai airport in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, down from 30 hours, the source added. The so-called “green corridor” arrangement at the airport in the Indian manufacturing hub emulated a model Apple uses at some airports in China, the source said. About six cargo jets with a capacity of 100 tons each have flown out since March, one of them this week just as new tariffs kicked in, the source and an Indian government official said. The packaged weight of an iPhone 14 and its charging cable come to about 350 grams (12.35 oz), Reuters measurements show, implying the total cargo of 600 tons comprised about 1.5 million iPhones, after accounting for some packaging weight. Apple and India’s aviation ministry did not respond to a request for comment. All the sources sought anonymity as the strategy and discussions were private. Apple sells more than 220 million iPhones a year worldwide, with Counterpoint Research estimating a fifth of total iPhone imports to the United States now come from India, and the rest from China. Trump consistently increased U.S. tariffs on China, to stand at 125% by Wednesday, from 54% earlier. At the 54% tariff rate, the $1,599 cost of the top-end iPhone 16 Pro Max in the United States would have surged to $2,300, calculations based on projections by Rosenblatt Securities show. SUNDAY SHIFTS In India, Apple stepped up air shipments to meet its goal of a 20% increase in usual production at iPhone plants, attained by adding workers, and temporarily extending operations at the biggest Foxconn India factory to Sundays, the source added. Two other direct sources confirmed the Foxconn plant in Chennai now runs on Sundays, which is typically a holiday. The plant turned out 20 million iPhones last year, including the latest iPhone 15 and 16 models. As Apple diversifies its manufacturing beyond China, it has positioned India for a critical role. Foxconn and Tata, its two main suppliers there, have three factories in all, with two more being built. Apple spent about eight months to plan and set up the expedited customs clearance in Chennai, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government asked officials to support Apple, one senior Indian official said. Foxconn shipments from India to the United States surged in value to $770 million in January and $643 million in February, compared to the range of $110 million to $331 million in the prior four months, commercially available customs data shows. More than 85% of the January and February air shipments of Foxconn were offloaded in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco. Foxconn did not respond to Reuters’ queries. Aditya Kalra, Abhijith Ganapavaram and Munsif Vengattil, Reuters
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The European Union’s executive commission said Thursday it will put retaliation measures on hold for 90 days to match President Donald Trump’s pause on his sweeping new tariffs on global trading partners and leave room for a negotiated solution.European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the commission, which handles trade for the bloc’s 27 member countries, “took note of the announcement by President Trump.”New tariffs on 20.9 billion euros ($23 billion) of US goods will be put on hold for 90 days because “we want to give negotiations a chance,” she said in a statement.But she warned: “If negotiations are not satisfactory, our countermeasures will kick in.”Trump imposed a 20% levy on goods from the EU as part of his onslaught of tariffs of 10% and upward against global trading partners but said Wednesday he will pause them for 90 days to give countries a chance to negotiate solutions to U.S. trade concerns.Countries subject to the pause will face Trump’s 10% baseline tariff.Before Trump’s announcement, EU member countries voted to approve a set of retaliatory tariffs on $23 billion in goods in response to his 25% tariffs on imported steel and aluminum that took effect in March. The EU, the largest trading partner of the U.S., described them as “unjustified and damaging.”The EU tariffs were set to go into effect in stages, some on April 15 and others on May 15 and Dec. 1. The EU commission didn’t immediately provide a list of the goods.Members of the EU the world’s largest trading bloc have said they prefer a negotiated deal to resolve a trade war that damages the economies on both sides. The bloc’s top trade official has shuttled between Brussels and Washington for weeks trying to head off a conflict.The targeted goods are a tiny fraction of the 1.6 trillion euros ($1.8 trillion) in U.S.-EU annual trade. Some 4.4 billion euros in goods and services crosses the Atlantic each day in what the European Commission calls “the most important commercial relationship in the world.”The EU has targeted smaller lists of goods in hopes of exerting political pressure and avoiding economic damage from a wider escalation of tit-for-tat tariffs.The EU is also working on a further set of countermeasures in response to Trump’s blanket 20% tariff on all European goods, now suspended. That could include measures aimed at U.S. tech companies and the services sector as well as trade in goods.Still, von der Leyen said that Europe intends to diversify its trade partnerships.She said that the EU will continue “engaging with countries that account for 87% of global trade and share our commitment to a free and open exchange of goods, services, and ideas,” and to lift barriers to commerce inside its own single market.“Together, Europeans will emerge stronger from this crisis,” von der Leyen said.-McHugh reported from Frankfurt, Germany Lorne Cook and David McHugh, Associated Press
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One recent rainy afternoon, I found myself in an unexpected rolephilosophy teacher to a machine. I was explaining the story of the Bhagavad Gita to a leading large language model, curious to see if it could grasp the lessons at the heart of one of the world’s most profound philosophical texts. The LLMs responses were impressively structured and fluent. They even sounded reflective at times, giving a sense that the AI model knew that it was itself part of this millennia-long conversation. Yet there was something fundamental that was missing from all the answers the machine gave methe lived experience that gives wisdom its true weight. AI can analyze the Gita, but it does not feel Arjuna’s moral dilemma or the power of Krishna’s guidance. It does not struggle with duty, fear, or consequence, and it does not evolve through a process of personal growth. AI can simulate wisdom, but it cannot embody it. The irony wasn’t lost on me. One of humanity’s oldest philosophical texts was testing the limits of our newest technology, just as that technology challenges us to rethink what it means to be human. Technology is just one part of the story As a founder of several technology companies and an author on innovation, I’ve followed AI’s evolution with both excitement and trepidation. But it was as a father that I first truly understood how important this technology will be for all of us. When my son was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a rare blood cancer, I spent hundreds of hours using LLMs to find and analyze sources that might help me understand his condition. Every flash of insight I gained and every machine hallucination that steered me down the wrong path left a permanent mark on me as a person. I began to see that the technical challenges involved in implementing AI are just one part of the story. Much more important are the philosophical questions this technology raises when it leaves its imprint on our lives. Arjuna, Krishna, and the Morality of Inaction In the Bhagavad Gita, the warrior Arjuna faces an impossible choice. Seeing his family and teachers arrayed on the battlefield across from him in the opposing army, he lays down his weapons. Unwilling to harm those he loves, he believes that inaction will absolve him of responsibility for the deaths that will take place when the armies clash. His charioteer, the god Krishna, disagrees, sharing an invaluable piece of wisdom that still resonates today: “No one exists for even an instant without performing action; however unwilling, every being is forced to act.” Arjuna may think that his refusal to participate in the battle removes him from the moral fray just as it does from the physical conflict. But Krishna shows him that this is not so. Sitting out the battle will have consequences of its own. Krishna may not kill those he values on the other side, but without his protection, many on his own side will fall. His choice not to act is an action with consequences of its own. Decisions (and Nondecisions) Have Consequences This mirrors our predicament with AI. Many people today wish they could opt out of the AI revolution entirelyto disengage from a technology that writes essays, diagnoses diseases, powers weapons of war, and mimics human conversation with often unsettling accuracy. But as Krishna taught Arjuna, inaction is not an option. Those who want to wash their hands of the problem empower others to make decisions on their behalf. There is no way to rise above the fray. The only question is whether or not we will engage wisely with AI. This wisdom extends beyond individual choices to organizational and societal responses. Every business decision about whether to adopt AI, every regulatory framework that governments consider, every educational curriculum that addresses (or ignores) AI literacyall are actions with consequences. Even choosing not to implement AI is itself a significant action with far-reaching effects. As Krishna taught Arjuna, we cannot escape the responsibility of choice. AI As a Mirror of Societyand Business AI systems, and LLMs in particular, hold up a mirror to humanity. They reflect back at us all the human-created content they have been trained on, both the good and the bad. And this has ethical, social, and economic implications. If AI-driven recommendations reinforce past trends, will innovation and sustainability suffer? If algorithms favor corporate giants over independent brands, will consumers be nudged toward choices that consolidate market power? AI doesn’t just reflect historyit is shaping the future of commerce. As such, it requires careful human oversight. Recently, I conducted an experiment with a major retailer’s recommendation engine. The algorithm consistently steered me toward established brands with large advertising budgets, even when smaller companies offered better products or alternative options that might have interested me. This algorithmic preference wasn’t maliciousit simply optimized for historical purchasing patterns and profit margins. Yet its cumulative effect could make it harder for innovative, purpose-driven companies to gain visibility, potentially slowing the adoption of alternative business models. AI and Philosophy AI-driven automation is also transforming the workforce, reshaping entire industries, from journalism to customer service to the creative arts. This transition is bringing new efficiencies but it also raises critical questions: How do we ensure that the economic displacement of human workers does not widen inequality? Can we create AI systems that augment human work rather than replace it? These are not just technical questions but questions with deeply philosophical ramifications. They demand that we think about issues such as the value of labor and the dignity of work. At a time when so much attention is being paid to bringing manufacturing jobs back to the United States, they also have an intensely political dimension. Will reshoring matter if these jobs, and many more, are automated within just a few years? As AI becomes more capable, we must also ask whether our reliance on it weakens human creativity and problem-solving skills. If AI generates ideas, composes music, and writes literature, will human originality decline? If AI can complete complex tasks, will we become passive consumers of algorithmic output rather than active creators? The answers to these questions will depend not just on AI’s capabilities but on how we choose to integrate this technology into our lives. The Middle Way Public sentiment toward AI swings between utopian optimism and dystopian dread, and I have witnessed this same polarization firsthand in boardrooms and policy discussions. Some see AI as a panacea for global problemscuring diseases, reversing climate change, creating prosperity. Others fear mass unemployment, autonomous weapons, and existential threats. I have seen senior leaders chasing the latest technology without thinking about how it can help deliver on the companys mission while others reect out of hand the possibility that AI could do more than automate a small number of IT services. The Buddha taught the virtue of the Middle Way: a path of balance that avoids extremes. Between the fascination of the AI maximalists and the fear of the AI Luddites lies a more balanced approachone informed by both technological innovation and ethical reflection. We can strike this balance only if we start by asking what values should guide the development and implementation of AI. Should efficiency always take precedence over human well-being? Should AI systems be allowed to make life-and-death decisions in healthcare, warfare, or criminal justice? These are ethical dilemmas we must confront now. We cannot afford to sit idle while these questions are answered in a piecemeal way depending on what seems to be most convenient at the moment. If we allow unreflective answers about AI usage to become deeply embedded in our social structures, it will be all but impossible to change course later. The Path Forward Jean-Paul Sartre, the influential French existentialist philosopher, argued that human beings are condemned to be freeour choices define us and we cannot escape the need to impose meaning on life through those choices. The AI revolution presents us with a new defining choice. We can use this technology to amplify distraction, division, and exploitation, or we can take it as a catalyst for human growth and development. Transcending what we are now does not mean finding an escape from our humanity but rather finding a way to fulfill its potential at the highest possible level. It means embracing wisdom, compassion, and moral choice while acknowledging our limitations and biases. AI should not replace human judgment but rather complement itembodying our highest values while compensating for our blind spots. As we stand at this technological crossroads, the wisdom of ancient philosophical traditions offers valuable guidance, from the Bhagavad Gita and Buddhist mindfulness to Aristotle’s virtue ethics and Socratess self-reflection. These traditions remind us that technological progress must be balanced with ethical development, that means and ends cannot be separated, and that true wisdom involves both knowledge and compassion. Just as the alchemists of old sought the philosopher’s stonea mythical substance capable of transforming base metals into goldwe now seek to transform our technological capabilities into true wisdom. The search for the philosopher’s stone was never merely about material transformation but about spiritual enlightenment. Similarly, AI’s greatest potential lies not in its technical capabilities but in how it might help us better understand ourselves and our place in the universe. A more human future This journey of philosophical reflection cannot be separated from technological development; it must be integral to it. We must cultivate what the ancient Greeks called phronesisthe practical wisdom that can guide action in complex situations. This wisdom enables us to navigate uncertainty, to accept that we cannot predict every outcome of technological change, and yet to move forward with both courage and caution. By balancing innovation with caution, efficiency with meaning, and technological progress with human values, we can create a future that enhances rather than diminishes what is most valuable about being human. We can build AI systems that amplify our creativity rather than replacing it with mechanistic outputs, that expand our choices rather than constraining them, that deepen our human connections rather than substituting virtual alternatives. In doing so, we may finally realize what philosophers have sought throughout history: not just mastery over nature, but wisdom about how to live well in an ever-changing and uncertain world.
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